JJ Redick: NBA Players ‘Have Gotten Screwed’ By Owners

JJ Redick says that he’s ready to miss the entire season in order for NBA players to get a fair deal from ownership. So far, he feels the players are getting royally screwed. Per the Orlando Sentinel: “Redick is not just a sharpshooter on the basketball court, he is sharper than most when it comes to what is happening in the ongoing labor dispute. And to put it bluntly, he says, the players ‘have gotten screwed.’ He says he ‘would not take the deal that’s currently on the table.’ And he says he’ ready to ‘miss the year’ rather than sign a bad deal. Redick had some strong opinions about David Stern and the hard-line NBA owners when he was a guest on our Open Mike radio show Tuesday. One of those hard-line owners is reportedly Michael Jordan of the Charlotte Bobcats. When he played, Jordan felt the players deserved the brunt of the money, but now he feels the owners deserve a bigger share. The stance, Redick correctly pointed out, is ‘extremely hypocritical.’ Redick said it’s gotten personal and emotional and many players are upset with owners who are trying to crush the players at the negotiating table. ‘There was a time when I thought common sense and logic would prevail,’ Redick said, ‘but in the last week or so I think the tide has turned and there’s a lot of emotion involved. And when emotion is involved, it’s a huge wildcard. There are a lot of players that are very angry. We feel as a group we’ve given and given and conceded and conceded and we’ve got nothing in return. To use an analogy, the owners are essentially up by four touchdowns on us. And instead of running the clock out in the fourth quarter, they’re running trick plays and double reverses to run up the score and embarrass us.’”